This invention relates to a golf ball which reduces the difference in travel distance with a driver (W#1) between high-head speed golfers and low-head speed golfers, as compared with prior art golf balls.
A number of golf balls having a larger outer diameter were proposed in the prior art. Such golf balls are known, for example, from U.S. Pat. No. 5,209,485, U.S. Pat. No. 5,273,287, U.S. Pat. No. 5,470,075, U.S. Pat. No. 5,482,286, U.S. Pat. No. 5,503,397, U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,493, U.S. Pat. No. 5,569,100, U.S. Pat. No. 5,588,924, U.S. Pat. No. 5,738,597, U.S. Pat. No. 5,833,554, U.S. Pat. No. 5,971,871, U.S. Pat. No. 6,102,816, U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,447, U.S. Pat. No. 6,315,683, U.S. Pat. No. 5,601,503, U.S. Pat. No. 5,609,532, U.S. Pat. No. 5,720,675, etc.
However, increasing the outer diameter of balls invites a loss of travel distance. This tendency becomes prominent especially in a high head speed region, failing to satisfy those golfers with an ability in that high head speed region, with respect to travel distance.
Also, simply increasing the initial velocity of golf balls permits not only low-head speed (HS) golfers, but also high-head speed golfers to get a gain in travel distance. For example, balls tailored to an initial velocity of at least 77.7 m/s are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,846,141, U.S. Pat. No. 6,626,771, U.S. Pat. No. 6,672,976, etc.
However, since these golf balls place a focus on the improvement in dimples formed on the ball surface, their improvements in ball outer diameter and structure are insufficient. When two high and low-head speed golfers play with the same golf balls, there arises a significant difference in travel distance. This becomes a practical disadvantage to the low head speed golfer, achieving no compensation for the handicap. Therefore, if the difference in travel distance between high and low-head speed golfers is reduced to lessen the handicap difference between them, the ball becomes of greater value in use by high and low-head speed golfers.